Learning Pashto Onlien – آنلاین پښتو درسونه

I am planning to start online Pashto courses for beginners and advanced learners. For more details and registration please read Learning Pashto Online.

Pashto lessons (Pashto learning)

Hello everyone!

Here is a series of new Pashto lessons: http://www.hadihairan.com/2011/06/learn-pashto-introduction.html

Learning Pashto Online: Useful Information

Learning Pashto is as learning any language of the world: the learners have to have an interest in the language and its culture, willingness to learn and access to resources they need. As the Pashto language has never enjoyed patronage of any emperor or any powerful and independent state throughout history, but had been a target of the regional powers until late, and has managed to survive through continuous attempts against its existence, there are not as much learning resources available for it as for the other languages of the world. Yet enough books of grammar, about the usage of the language, and dictionaries from Pashto to other languages and vice versa have been written and printed and are available today that can help those who are keen to achieve their goals.

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Translating into Pashto: Some Common Mistakes

Some people think that Pashto is a very complicated and hard-to-learn language. The reason behind this perception is a lack of knowledge and inaccessibility to the resources of this ancient yet live and interesting language.

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پشتو سيکھنے کے لئے آنلائن ذرائع (Online Resources for Learning Pashto)

 پشتو زبان افغانستان، پاکستان اور دنيا کے ان حصوں ميں بولی جاتی ہے جہاں جہاں پشتون آباد ہيں۔ يہ ايک قديم زبان ہے اور باوجوديکہ تاريخ کے کسی دور ميں بھی کسی حکومت نے اس کی سرپرستی نھيں کی يہ اب تک دنيا کی زندہ زبانوں ميں شامل ہے اور کروڑوں لوگوں ميں بولی اور لکھی جاتی ہے۔

 لوکلائزيشن کے بڑھتے ہوئے رجحان اور پشتونوں کے علاقے ميں ہونيوالی عالمی لڑائی نے اس زبان کی اہميت کو مزيد اجاگر کيا ہے اور اب نہ صرف پشتونوں ميں يہ احساس پيدا اور تقويت پکڑتا جارہا ہے کہ اپنی زبان کو سيکھے اور لکھے، بولے بلکہ غير پشتونوں ميں بھی کافی تعداد لوگ پشتو سيکھنے ميں مصروف ہوگئے ہيں۔

 خوش قسمتی کی بات يہ ہے کہ پشتو سيکھنے کے لئے انٹرنيٹ پر کافی ايسا مواد موجود ہے جس سے مفت استفادہ کيا جاسکتا ہے۔ ھر زبان سيکھنے والے کے لئے لازمی ہے کہ وہ جس زبان کو سيکھنا چاہتا ہے اسے زيادہ سے زيادہ پڑھے، لکھے اور سنے۔

 تو ظاہر ہے کہ زيادہ سے زيادہ پشتو پڑھنے، لکھنے اور سننے کے لئے آپ کو اتنے ہی زيادہ ذرائع کی ضرورت ہوگی۔ تو مندرجہ ذيل سطور ميں ان آنلائن ذرائع کے لينکس دئيے جاتے ہيں جو آپ کے لئے اپنے مقصد تک رسائی ميں مددگار ثابت ہوسکتے ہيں۔

 قاموسونہ ڈاٹ کام(www.qamosona.com)۔ قاموس پشتو ميں ڈکشنری کو کہتے ہيں۔ اس ويب سائٹ پر آپ کو کئ انگلش سے پشتو، پشتو سے انگلش (English to Pashto and Pashto to English) وغيرہ ڈکشنرياں مليں گی جن سے آپ بالکل مفت استفادہ کرسکتے ہيں۔ اس ويب سائٹ پر اردو سے پشتو اور پشتو سے اردو (Urdu to Pashto and Pashto to Urdu) ڈکشنری ميرے خيال ميں نھيں ہے مگر انگلش سے پشتو کی کئ ڈکشنرياں ہيں۔

 ٹول افغان ڈاٹ کام (www.tolafghan.com)، بينوا ڈاٹ کام (www.benawa.com)، تاند ڈاٹ کام(www.taand.com) ، روہی ڈاٹ کام (www.rohi.com) اور خبريال ڈاٹ کام (www.khabaryal.com) چند ايسی ويب سائٹس ہيں جن پر آپ کو مضامين، خبروں، تبصروں، کتابوں اور معلومات عامہ سے ليکر موسيقی اور اشعار تک مليں گے۔ ٹول افغان کے پاس ايک آنلائن لائبريری بھی ہے جس پر پشتو کتابيں دستياب ہيں اور ايک فورم (Discussion Forum) بھی جہاں جاکر آپ دوسرے لوگوں کے ساتھہ ہر چيز بحث کرسکتے ہيں۔

 بھير ڈاٹ کام (www.baheer.com) اور رومال ڈاٹ کام (www.roomal.com) خالص ادبی ويب سائٹس ہيں جن پر آپ کو پڑھنے کے لئے پشتو اشعار، افسانے، ناول، خاکے و ديگر ادبی تحريريں مليں گی۔ داستانونہ ڈاٹ کام (www.dastanoona.com) پر صرف پشتو افسانے اور ان کے متعلق بحثيں پڑھی جاسکتی ہيں۔

 خيبرواچ ڈاٹ کام (www.khyberwatch.com) اپنے آنلائن فورم کے لئے مشھور ہے جن کے پڑھنے والے زيادہ تر مغربی ممالک ميں رہنے والے پشتون ہيں۔ پزواک ڈاٹ کام (www.pajhwok.com) پر آپ کو پشتو خبريں اور وھی خبريں انگلش ميں بھی مليں گی، مگر ياد رھے کہ اس ويب سائٹ کی تازہ خبريں پڑھنے کے لئے پيسے دينے پڑھتے ہيں۔

 بی بی سی پشتو ڈاٹ کام (www.bbcpashto.com)، اشنا ريڈيو (www.voanews.com\pashto) اور ازادی ريڈيو (www.azadiradio.com) پر آپ پشتو پروگرام سن سکتے ہيں اور کچھہ خبريں پڑھ بھی سکتے ہيں۔

Afghan Adabi Baheer: The Writers’ Association of Afghanistan

 ‘My name is Ameenullah Watanpal. I have just arrived from Kandahar,’ announced the young enthusiastic poet, about 24, after he was invited to the stage to read his poem to the Afghan Adabi Baheer’s weekly gathering at a local school. Afghan Adabi Baheer, or the Writers’ Association of Afghanistan, has been a platform for Afghan poets, writers, and intellectuals to read their poems, short stories and research papers, express their views on national and international issues, and discuss contemporary literary trends since it was established in Peshawar, Pakistan, some 15 years back. Its meetings are held every Friday regularly from the first day of its establishment, but now in Kabul instead of Peshawar.

 The young poet, Mr Watanpal, then read his poem titled ‘Peace’:

 ‘We need peace, O Lord! Yes, we need peace.

My young eyes, from the day they were opened to see this world,

have seen nothing but corpses, wounds, the war.

These eyes have seen their mother dying,

they don’t know how a father loves his child,

and this because of this unending war!

 The war has took away the opportunity of being educated from me.

The war has stolen from me the opportunity of being an engineer.

The war has deprived me of becoming a doctor, a teacher.

So, I am the most affected victim of the war, O Lord!

We beg you, O Lord! We now need peace, stop the war….

 Undoubtedly, peace and security is the major, say the first, demand of all the people of Afghanistan and that is the reason the young poet wanted to condemn war and praise peace, as well as spread the message of love. In the same way, Aman Musherey, or ‘Peace Poetry Gatherings’ are common these days in Afghanistan, mostly held in provinces, in which the poets spread the message of love and peace, and condemn war and conflict in their poems, thus inviting and encouraging youths to embrace peace and reject extremism and militancy.

 In the beginning, the aim of establishing this forum, the Afghan Adabi Baheer, was to give a platform to Afghan writers and poets, who were living as refugees in Pakistan, to express their thoughts and feelings. It was then the only and a respectable source of entertainment for the Afghan youths. After the Taliban government was toppled in Kabul, and when the refugees started returning to their country, Afghan Adabi Baheer also was shifted to Kabul where it turned to be the central forum for Afghan poets and writers across the Afghanistan. Since then, the association has not only directly and indirectly trained and encouraged many young writers and journalists, who now work on top government posts or with different national and international media organizations, but has also inspired the establishment of many more similar institutions such as Merman Kulturiz-Tolaniz Baheer, or The Afghan Women Writers’ Association, which now has branches in some of the provinces where a high number of female writers, poets, and intellectuals take part in its regular weekly meetings. Both the associations have contributed a great deal to the modern Pashto literature and preserve the right to be acknowledged nationally and internationally.

 Unfortunately, the government of Afghanistan,  which has a whole ministry for cultural affairs, has completely ignored this important institution. During the association’s last meeting, in which more than fifty poets read their poems and a short story was read out for general discussion, it was announced in the end that the Baheer had no place for its next meeting. Previously its members used to gather in a hall of a non-governmental organization, but recently the organization told the Baheer that they needed the hall and were no more able to give it for its weekly e can give it for its gathe ral discussion, ssues, ears back.gatherings. The members of the association were so frustrated with the government’s apathy and unresponsiveness that they did not consider to ask it for help. Later, a private university offered its hall on temporary base.

 In the world of literature, there are associations and organizations that charge a membership fee and then provide their members with these and some other facilities. But Baheerwals, as they like to be called, I think that that system would not work in Afghanistan. The reasons are valid:

 1)      Afghanistan is a war-torn country and people are living under the line of poverty. Even in Kabul, the capital, the government is facing several challenges. Besides security, there are no roads, health facilities, electricity, and clean water in areas just outside the main city.

2)      There is no market for Pashto literature. Due to the high ratio of illiteracy in Pashto-speaking areas, and the indifference of both (Afghanistan and Pakistan) governments towards the language, very few people buy Pashto books. You can’t find even one publisher that publish Pashto books and pay the authors royalties. If an author wants to publish his book, he pays the publisher, and then distributes his book free. Only few authors can afford this. Most of the poets and writers just go to the regular weekly gatherings and read their writings there. The gatherings are the major source for them to express their views.

 In this case, who will ask members of a literary association to pay membership fee? But keeping the importance of their role in the society in mind, I think the only way is that the government does provide them a place free of cost.

 Just to remind, Afghan Adabi Baheer holds its weekly literary meetings in Kabul, and poets and writers attend these meetings from provinces as far as Kandahar, Zabul, Nangrahar, Helmand, Kanduz, Mazar-e-Shari, though they have similar gatherings in their provinces as well.

Important Computer and Internet terminology in Pashto

Browser (لټونګر)

Server (پالنګر)

Administrator (پازوال)

Manager (سمبالګر)

Viewer (ليدونکى)

Messenger (استوژګر)

Installer (لګونګر)

User (کارن)

Editor (سمونګر)

Author (ليکوال)

Folder (پوښى)

Pagebreaker (مخماتوونکى)

Illustrated learning Pashto books for non-Pashto speakers and foreigners

 The Pashto Academy of Peshawar University of Peshawar has published a Bilingual Primer, an illustrated book aimed for non-Pashto speakers and foreigners to learn Pashto from.

 The beautiful book contains a lot of activity based information for learning the Pashto language. It has made the job easy and quicker.

 Another book is Pashto Teacher, written by Prof. Gul Jan Wror in 1990, which is now unavailable in the market but we have made some copies.

 The third is a booklet which contains links and information of all Pashto websites and online forums.

 The set of these three books is available for those who want to learn English. To order the set, just contact ahhairan@gmail.com.

English-Pashto Primer

Some internet and computer terms in Pashto

• Online (په کرښه)
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• Website (ګورتځاى)
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• Email (برېښليک)
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• Browser (لټونګر)
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• Message (پېغام)
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• Font (ليکبڼه)
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• Software (پوستکالى)
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• Login (ننوتل)
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• Logout (وتل)
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• Username (کارن نوم)
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• Password (شفر)
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• Forum (فورمونه)
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• Application (کاريال)
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• Open Source (پرانستې سرچينه)
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• Server (پالنګر)
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• Search (لټون)
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• Default (تلوال)
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• Save (خوندي)
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• M.B. (م.ب.)
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• FAQs (مپځونه) (مهمې پوښتنې او ځوابونه)
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• Select (ټاکل)
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• Touchpad (لمسنالۍ)
•  
• Draft (ګارليک)
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• File (دوتنه)
•  
• Folder (پوښى)
•  
• Table (جدول)
•  
• View (کتنه)

جنس

Pronounced as jens, the word has several meanings.

 1) One popular meaning is ‘sex.’

 Example: جنسي کيسې (sex stories)

 2) It is also used for gender.

 Example:  د ښځې او نر جنس (male female gender)

 3) The third meaning is ‘edible.’ Its plural is: ajnaas.

 Example: د غنمو جنس (edible wheat)

 4) ‘Alike’ is another meaning.

 Example: هر همجنس د خپل همجنس سره جوړېږي (رحمان بابا) (Everyone likes to be with their alike)

 The word is originally from Arabic. An entry for this on Wikitionary can be found here.